February 8 2024

Principal's Reflection

Dear Families,

Welcome to the 2024 school year. It is a privilege to be appointed to the role of Acting Principal of St Brigid's in 2024 and I look forward to meeting you all over the coming period of time. We also welcome Samantha Archer and Shanaye Blizzard as Teacher Assistants to our staffing team. Setting up a school and classrooms at the beginning of a school year is a major task and one that our staff approached with great enthusiasm. Thank you to all of our staff for ensuring that our grounds, classrooms and buildings were ready for our students' arrival. 

Wednesday was the first day of the school year for our students. For some of our students it is the start of their final year at St Brigid's. For others it is their first. For all students it is the start of a new chapter in their lives as they start the new school year. As I walked around the classes on Wednesday there was great excitement from students to be back at school and for them to see their friends and school staff after a holiday break. At Assembly on Wednesday we reminded students that the start of a new school year provides a great opportunity to focus on a particular goal. It might be in reading, mathematics or it might be a social goal. I encouraged students to think about what it is that they would like to improve on throughout the year. Please take a moment to discuss this with your child over the coming weeks. 

Last Friday our teachers and teacher assistants attended the whole system Insight professional learning day at the Paranaple Centre in Devonport. The purpose of this day was to continue to upskill staff on the science of learning and research based best practice teaching pedagogy. As a school we will continue to reflect and refine our teaching approach to ensure we are using best practice strategies in our classrooms. 

Please read the newsletter closely as it does contain important information including details about upcoming events, in particular swimming.

Thank you for your ongoing support,

Nic Saltmarsh

Acting Principal

Religious Education

The 1st February was the Feast of St Brigid, our school's patron saint. Students participated in learning more about St Brigid on their first day back at school on Wednesday, 7th February. We also celebrated St Brigid as a whole school, through prayer at our Whole School Gathering on Wednesday. 

Throughout her life, St. Brigid of Ireland, was known for her compassion and charity for others, as well as her extraordinary spirituality. A contemporary of St. Patrick, her devotion to God and desire to do His will was noted from a young age, despite her unusual upbringing. Her example was one of tenderness and love for the poor and underprivileged in Ireland, and she continues to inspire many to carry out these works of mercy today.

Please celebrate our patron saint with us, by praying this prayer:

Andrea Jaffray Morf

Deputy Principal

Pick up and Drop off

Staff car park

This is a no-standing zone, and traffic is to remain in a  continuous flow within this area. If your child is not yet ready for collection, please continue to drive around to avoid banked-up traffic. Families need to refrain from lining up along Jackson street as this is a safety hazard. 

Church car park

Please ensure all cars are parked and most improtantly, families are using the yellow crossing lines, particularly during peak pick-up times.

Help us keep our children safe.

New Students

We welcome our Kinder students to SBW as they begin their educational journey. We also welcome the following new students and their families to the SBW community:

- Andrew in Grade 6
- Nicholas in Grade 6
- Murray in Grade 4
- Theodore in Grade 1

Uniform

Please see below information about uniform requirements. It is an expectation that all students are wearing the correct uniform. 

Formal Summer Uniform - Year 3-6

Friendology

This year, our staff will be leading a programme called Friendology, with our students. This programme is intended to help our students form and strengthen connections with others and have the ability to form strong, healthy boundaries in releationships. Please take the time to view the information and learn about Friendology - URSTRONG, on the attached flyer, that has further information about this evidence based programme for children. 

Time Capsule

Late last year, our newly elected School Captains for 2024, assisted burying a time capsule in our Kinder yard. The time capsule represents the final celebration of our 100 year anniversary. All students were asked to depict their thoughts and understanding by drawing about the past and what they predict the future will look like for education in 100 years. We will place a photo of our school leaders holding the time capsule in a prominent place in our school so that in 100 years time, students and staff can enjoy opening and exploring the contents.

Swimmimg

Grade Three – Six swimming programs will be held at the Burnie Aquatic Centre from Monday, 12th February, to Friday, 23rd February 2024.

Students will travel by bus to and from the pool in their class groups. Please ensure that children have a substantial packed lunch on these days as no access to the pool canteen will be granted.
 
As swimming is a part of the HPE curriculum, all children must participate. Please ensure you have completed your child's permission form on Compass to enable them to participate.
 
Parents are welcome to attend their child’s lesson; due to strict guidelines, there will be no parent access to the change rooms.
 
Please see below the timetable for swimming groups:
 10am-10.45am            Grade 3
10.50am-11.30am        Grade 4
11.40 am-12.25 pm      Grade 5
12.30 pm-1.15 pm         Grade6
 
Students will need to bring the following:
· Bathers
· Towel
· Spare underwear
· Plastic/waterproof bag to put wet bathers in
· Goggles (if they wish)
· Swimming cap-Available via QKR or the School Office $3.00
 
This year, we will not be holding a swimming carnival due to limited available dates. In its place, the Burnie Aquatic Centre swimming instructors and Mrs. Hannah Chatwin will conduct time trials with students on Friday, 23^rd February, assisting us in selecting our 2024 NW swimming teams.
 
The NW Swimming Carnival will be held at the Burnie Aquatic Centre on Tuesday, 12^th March. Students who make the NW team will be notified on Tuesday, 27^th February, with more information to follow.

Communication

COMPASS 

Please ensure that you are accessing Compass on a regular basis. On  Compass, you will have access to your child’s attendance data, school reports, the ability to contact class teachers, book parent-teacher meetings, report your child’s absence and receive all essential communication such as School Newsletters and important information.

See-Saw 

The See-saw app is used as a platform where students and parents are provided with ongoing ‘Feed-up - Feedback and Feed - forward’ in relation to student learning within the classroom. It is important to ensure you have access to this app. Please see Administration if you are having any difficulty accessing.

Staff Email

All staff are contactable via email. Email addresses are shared with families at the beginning of the year.  If you are having trouble accessing, please call our administration staff for email addresses. Our school’s leadership and administration team are very mindful of the email traffic that our staff receive. Please do not expect an immediate reply, particularly after hours. Staff will not be responding to emails after 5.30 PM. 

Child Safety

Catholic Education Tasmania have updated several Child Safety policies. These policies along with other CET policies can be accessed at https://catholic.tas.edu.au/policies

Complaints Procedure

Catholic Education Tasmania (CET) acknowledges that all students, families, staff, volunteers and members of the broader community have the right to raise a complaint (including matters of concern or a grievance) with CET. Please see the flowcharts below that outline the complaints procedure. The full complaints policy and procedures can be accessed at https://catholic.tas.edu.au/policies

Upcoming Events